


Winter Wonderland

by Oblivion_Wanderer



Category: Pacific Rim (Movies)
Genre: First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, Secret Santa, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-25
Updated: 2014-12-25
Packaged: 2018-03-02 08:20:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,892
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2805857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oblivion_Wanderer/pseuds/Oblivion_Wanderer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Newt suggests they go outside for a bit, and Gottlieb reluctantly agrees.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Winter Wonderland

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BlairRabbit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlairRabbit/gifts).



> My gift for the PR Secret Santa- for BlairRabbit!  
> One of the prompts that was asked for was Hermann & Newt in the snow, so I hope this is alright (because you're such a fantastic writer and I want this to be good). 
> 
> Set to the song Your Hand In Mine, by Explosions In The Sky.

Naturally, Anchorage tended to get much snow in winter. This was Alaska after all, which meant a long, cold winter.

Gottlieb didn't really mind. He'd been over to Vladivostok once before in Russia and the weather was almost identical. Plus the parka he'd received from the Kaidonovsky's made it more manageable (of which he had been secretly thankful for). There were downsides of course, such as the lab he worked in wasn't heated well or that the cold made his joints ache at times, especially in his bad leg.

“Dude, It's freezing in here. Aren't they ever gonna fix the heat or do they not give a damn?”

And of course he was working with one Dr. Newt Geiszler.

“Maybe if you dress more appropriately you wouldn't be complaining.” Gottlieb replied to his colleague.

“What's wrong with how I dress? You're one to talk.” Newt countered.

“Says the one who is complaining of the cold.”

Newton Geiszler- “Nah, just call me Newt”. Otherwise known as the biologist he had to work with. The man was sometimes downright intolerable, but he had to learn to deal with that.

Newt hadn't exactly come off that way when they first started exchanging letters, but then their first physical meeting blew up and they hadn't spoken since. Eventually finding out that upon moving to Anchorage they had been both stationed there and were to work in consolidation, they slowly learned to open back up to the other. Their first meeting in Anchorage was the first time they had actually spoken to each other since their disastrous meet-up prior.

As it seemed, through all the fights they had, the two K-Scientists worked well together. Gottlieb grew to appreciate that. Newt would never really change though, always calling himself a 'rockstar'. One learned to live with that.

“Newton, just put something warmer on. You'll catch a cold.” Gottlieb suggested as Newt fixed himself some coffee.

“No, and I would be fine if they would just fix the heat.” Newt retorted, hands on his hips.

“Suit yourself.”

“Or... maybe if I could just borrow that parka... it must be magic-”

“Attempt to steal my parka off my person and I will hit you with the cane.”

Newt whined just as the coffee finished brewing. Gottlieb rolled his eyes, though he did secretly wish the techs could fix the heat.

Ether that, or at some point Newt would drag a space heater into the lab.

 _'That wouldn't be so bad.'_ The physicist thought.

They continued working, as they always did. The War was not easy on anyone- harsh and cruel, as it had been for years, much like all wars were- and the research done in K-Science certainly waited for no one.

Gottlieb certainly didn't mind the constant work much; he had already devoted a few years to the PPDC, coding the Mark I Jaegers and all. Gottlieb liked his work. Ever since his dreams of being a pilot were crushed so long ago, he wanted to do something worthwhile with his life. That had been the original reason for going into Mathematics- he could trust them, look to them for guidance-, but then the War came, the first Kaiju rising from the abyss, from that bloom in the ocean floor, and his life took a new direction.

And then there was also Newt, the constant... Or at least he supposed the biologist was a constant, like these endless numbers. A thorn in his side at times, yes, but still a constant, even after their silence.

So that was it. Gottlieb kept working alongside Newt, doing what he could to aid in gaining the advantage in the conflict against the Kaiju.

Hours would pass like that, and hours did pass before Newt walked over to his desk, leaning against it, and spoke.

“How about we go out?” Newt said, bluntly.

“Pardon?” Gottlieb questioned.

“Not on a date- I mean, unless you-”

“Newton.”

“I meant outside. We should go outside.”

The physicist took off his glasses, rubbing his eyes. “I don't know if that's a good idea. Winter has set in and it's snowing.”

Newt pouted. “You're only saying that because this is Alaska. It's always cold in Alaska, same as it was in Vladivostok. Also, I looked outside; the snowfall is light. Come on, Herms-”

“I told you to stop calling me that.”

“-I just wanna have some fun.”

“Then go yourself.” Gottlieb waved him off. “We have a report due for the Marshal soon.”

Newt walked around to stand in front of him. “That's exactly what I'm talking about. You need a break or you're going to melt your brain, and we can't have that.”

“Surprising to hear that from the one who works around decaying Kaiju parts.”

“Come on, man. It'll help you clear your head. It must get stuffy in there with all those numbers and maths.”

Gottlieb pondered this. He'd been working for a good long while now, so maybe some fresh air would help a little.

“Fine.” He finally accepted, reaching for his cane. “But not too long.”

“Alright!” Newt beamed, jumping up and down before grabbing his jacket off his chair. “Come on, before the sun comes out and melts it all away!”

“Somehow I doubt that is likely.”

* * *

Of course the first thing Newt had done when they got outside was dance and twirl around, laughing as he did so. Gottlieb watched with puzzlement, but also thought it was nice to see Newt in a relaxed state. He had been right- they had both been working hard lately. While the cold was bothersome and he was thinking 'I cannot believe I let Newton talk me into this', they'd been working for over a day straight and maybe a break was in order after all.

Gottlieb looked around at the snow covered landscape of the Anchorage Shatterdome. He had to admit, he reminded him of home, of Germany. Winters were milder there by comparison, despite his hometown of Garmisch-Partenkirchen being in the mountains, but there were moments when he found it to be truly beautiful. When it was calm and softly snowing like it was now, it had a sort of majestic feeling.

“Hey, Hermann, think fast!”

Not only was he snapped out of his reverie by Newt's voice, but by a snowball hitting his chest, which made him stumble back in surprise.

Gottlieb sputtered and looked at the snow splattered across his jacket before looking back up at his colleague.

“Newton! How dare you?!” Gottlieb snapped.

“Loosen up a little.” Newt grinned, hands in his pockets.

“And you thought throwing snowballs at me would help?”

“Maybe?”

He sighed. “Please don't do that again.”

“Spoil-sport.” Newt stuck his tongue out and flopped down in the snow.

Gottlieb was about to tell Newt to go lick a pole- that would be interesting-, but he was suddenly more intrigued by the other scientist moving his arms and legs in the snow.

“What are you doing?” Gottlieb asked.

“What does it look like? I'm making a snow angel. Don't tell me you've never done it before.”

Gottlieb wasn't going to admit that had done snow angels as a child, and it had been years. He just shrugged in response to Newt's question.

The biologist gaped at him. “Are you serious? Dude, that's one of the best parts about being out in the snow.”

“Besides chucking projectile, packed together, particles of snow at me?”

“Ugh, you suck the fun out of everything.” Newt extended a hand up. “Come on, I'll show you how.”

“Why?”

“Because it's fun.”

Gottlieb considered it. One reason he didn't want to take part was because of his leg; the cold was already stressing his joints. Then again, he supposed humoring Newt in this little gimmick of his would satisfy him for a little while.

He bit his lip and looked away, then breathed out a sigh and glanced back down at Newt.

“Fine.” He answered “You've already dragged me out here. Might as well make the most of it.”

Newt's face lit up as Gottlieb slowly lowered himself down next to Newt, onto the snow. Oh God, it was cold with his back pressed to the frigid ground, the chill of it slowly seeping through his parka. Snowflakes kept landing on his face and Gottlieb shook his head to try and make the snowflakes go away. Newt just laughed beside him.

“Dude, it's like rain, only colder.” He chuckled. “Now move your arms and legs like I do.”

The physicist watched him, but frowned. “You know I can't move my bad leg much.”

“That's fine. You don't really have to.”

Newt moved his limbs like they were windshield whippers. Gottlieb rolled his eyes, but moved his arms in the same fashion.

“Now you've got it!”

Gottlieb smiled. This wasn't so bad after all. He was actually starting to enjoy this.

And then his hand brushed against Newt's and they both stopped.

Gottlieb turned his head to see Newt was looking at him. He could feel the tiniest hints of a blush rise to his face, but he'd rather pretend Newt didn't see that.

“Um... Newton...” He started.

“Yeah?” The other scientist's breath was coming out in white puffs as it froze in the air.

“Maybe we should get inside.” Gottlieb said. “I'm feeling a bit chilled, I'm afraid.”

“Oh...” Newt looked a bit disappointed. “Okay, yeah; same here. You freeze easy.”

Gottlieb sat up and reached over for his cane to find Newt had already gotten up on his feet. He made an effort to get up, but his leg felt stiff.

“Newton, may... may I ask for your assistance?”

The biologist snapped to attention. “Yeah! Of course, dude!”

Gottlieb extended a hand and Newt grasped it, helping him to his feet. He made a nose of discomfort as there was a slight pull in his bad leg, but it quickly passed. Despite how he acted on a daily basis, he was careful when these kinds of things arose.

“Wow, I think you're right about the cold, because your hand is shaking.” And it was that moment when Newt spoke that he realized they were still holding each other's hand.

Gottlieb disengaged the contact, but found himself still feeling the lingering ghost of Newt's hand in his...

They started to walk back, Newt chattering about how they should do this again sometime and that he was going to make hot coco when they got back to the lab. Gottlieb was more of a tea person, so maybe he'd settle for that instead.

However, a patch of ice lay hidden underfoot, and it only made itself known when Gottlieb took a step and lost his footing in one tiny slip.

Next thing he knew, was that he was cold; shivering. He blinked his eyes open and found the world was angled sideways and mostly white. His ears were ringing, the cane was no where to be found when he tried to blindly search, and his bad leg hurt deeply. The physicist tried moving position to lay on his back, which caused his leg to throb in pain.

Snow was still falling down... and then he saw Newt come into his line of vision.

“Hermann, can you hear me?!” The biologist called; voice echoing and slowly drawing into focus, face drawn in worry.

“N...Newton...?” He spoke, winded. Whatever had happened had knocked the breath out of him.

“Oh thank God.” He could see the tension fade slightly from Newt's shoulders. “You fell, dude. Must've been some ice we couldn't see. You okay? Are you hurt?”

He gritted his teeth. “Leg hurts...”

“Shit. Um... should we go to medical, or-”

“No. I don't think... it's that serious. Just... hurts.”

Newt knelled down beside him. “Can you get up?”

“Yes, I think so. Just give me a moment. Though, I will most likely need your help.”

“Got it. I've got your back.”

Gottlieb relaxed back in the snow while he regained proper breathing. This was the last thing he needed today. At least... at least Newt was here. He was currently by his side ready to help. Gottlieb could be just as stubborn as the other scientist about accepting help, but he appreciated it all the same, especially from Newt.

Speaking of which- he lifted his head up to get a look at the other. His cheeks were rosy and his nose was a little red from being exposed to the cold, and there were still traces of concern in his green eyes that always looked brighter than they should be.

Then Newt, watching him carefully, picked up some snow and blew it into Gottlieb's face.

He winced. "What are you doing now?"

"I thought I'd see what would happen." Newt tried to smile. "And kinda just to mess with you... or distract you until you're ready to get up. That frown really suits you."

"Clearly you've chosen the wrong moment."

"Way to go and ruin a mood."

Gottlieb let his head fall back and gave a sigh of defeat, but he'll give Newt points for trying to distract him from the ache in his leg. He meant well, he always had in situations like this. It showed that Newt did care, beyond their bickering and fighting.

He wondered if Newt had thought of him during their silence that followed their first meeting and had worn the same expression, wondering how he was. Gottlieb had certainly pondered the same of his colleague. Newt had shown himself to be brash and irritating, but in their time apart, he had grown to miss their letters. Their reunion wasn't a fast acting cure to their fragmented relationship, or whatever it was, but they were at least talking. At least Newt was here now.

Funny how he had grown used to the other scientist's presence, that he could engage Gottlieb in ways no one else could, and for all it was worth, the man was brilliant. That had been one of the factors that gravitated him towards the existence of Newton Geiszler; the tattooed, impulsive, yet brilliant Dr. Newton Geiszler.

Looking up at the falling snow, Gottlieb thought about the image of Newt smiling and doing his work as usual, and that somehow warmed his heart. His thoughts about Newt had been doing that a lot lately. Maybe it was just because he was secretly glad to have Newt back in his life, but...

“Hey, Hermann?” Newt waved a hand in front of his eyes. “You were going all spacey. Don't tell me you hit your head.”

“Huh?” Gottlieb lifted his head again to meet Newt's eyes. “Yes... Yes, I'm fine.”

“Right. You better not be lying to me, you stubborn idiot.”

“I think my head is all well in order. I'm sure I would be feeling worse if I was.” He struggled to sit up. Newt instantly reached to put a hand on his back.

He felt a bit better with Newt bracing him. Of course his leg still ached terribly, but the feeling of Newt's hand on his back was a bit comforting. And his colleague.... He was closer to Gottlieb now, staring intently at his face.

“You...” He started “You look cold.”

“You do too... But it's kinda adorable.”

Newt continued to stare, until he suddenly moved in to kiss Gottlieb.

It was only brief, but Gottlieb was shocked and caught off guard. Never did he think that Newt would ever make such a bold move, it hardly crossed his mind. Maybe it explained why Newt had been looking at him strangely for the past few weeks. Did Newt truly feel this way?

As such, he was flustered when the other pulled away.

“W-What-?”

“Oh. Too soon...?” Newt hung his head as if he was ashamed. “Maybe I shouldn't have. You'd say I wasn't thinking. I'm sor-”

“No, Newton. Look at me.”

Gottlieb brought up a hand to Newt's face, a frown on his lips.

“It wasn't unpleasant actually.” He admitted. “Let me...”

He brought Newt back so he could tenderly kiss him. What came over him then he did not know, but all Gottlieb was thinking about was Newt so close to him, their lips together. It had felt oddly right, and made him forget everything else around him.

The physicist released Newt and smiled softly.

“Let's go back inside now.” He said. “I think I would like to relax, get warm, and be near you for a while.”  

Newt nodded. “Yeah... I don't know which would be worse; you frying your brain from working too hard or freezing to death out here.”

“You're the one who encouraged me to join you.”

"I didn't think you'd slip on some ice." He paused, blinking, and his expression went soft. "I'll get a heating pad for your leg when we're back inside, and then I'm gonna bundle you up in blankets and make some hot coco for us both."

"That sounds wonderful."

Newt handed back Gottlieb's cane, kissed his forehead, and they slowly helped each other off the ground. The physicist's leg still hurt, but once he got back inside he could deal with it, and Newt near him could only be more comforting.

Maybe it was a good thing after all they had gotten back in touch, and that Newt dragged him outside on this winter day.

 


End file.
